March was a great month for reading! I read seven books and two were on my reading list for the year. I’ve read seventeen books so far this year and I’m right on track to meet my goal of fifty-five, if not surpass it. But I still won’t get my hopes up, just in case something holds me back one or two months out of the year. But I’m still pretty proud of what I’ve accomplished in three months.
The Blades Memory by Lindsay Buroker
Of course, I continued on with this series. All that I love from the previous books carry over to this one–the playful banter gets me to laugh out loud frequently.
A lot of secrets are revealed, and we get to meet Ridge’s mom. And she is delightful, to say the least. Her teasing and asking about babies was spot on with a real mother.
Cas goes through a lot of emotional stuff that we only get to see from the outside which makes it easier to feel for her because we don’t know what all is going on inside her head, we just see her struggling.
The ending was a shitshow, but they managed to get through it with minor losses.
Looking forward to the next one – I love these damn characters.
I loved and loathed this book at the same time. The premise was pretty great. Only thing I felt could have expanded it would be to include flights out to other religions’ versions of afterlife. But that particular aspect wasn’t exactly a huge detail in the plot, so I don’t hold a grudge.
The best part of the book was the dialogue. The characters were witty and amusing and kept me reading even when the plot points got on my nerves.
Because the plot points were annoying.
I didn’t enjoy how good Bea was at the job right away. It didn’t seem believable. I figured she could struggle on a case or two before getting the hang of it and then moving on, but she was apparently an expert without any practice.
The romance line was dull. Bea deserved more from her afterlife. From the flashbacks, she wasn’t that bad of a person. Sure, she was manipulative and angsty, but she was a teenager with a step-mom and few friends. What else could you expect from her? And sure, she screwed up some stuff for her sister, but that just happens. It’s high school, not everything is as big as it seems at the time.
One of my favorite parts, though, was when they explained that “Karens” were given the jobs they degraded in real life. As a retail worker myself, I thought it was hilarious and the perfect payback.
The ending was a letdown, though. No closure in a book about being in limbo–shocking. But it made me giggle, so I guess it was okay.
Loved this book.
J.F. Penn has a vast store of knowledge and does so much research that her books come off as Real Life and that’s a little terrifying.
The action and the gore of this book had me on the edge of my seat. Morgan and Jake are constantly in danger and have to get out of some tight spots. But they power through, of course.
Their relationship is still simmering in the background, and I want to see it flare up. Even though I’m not a fan of romantic plotlines, I think this one works.
Looking forward to the next in the series.
So, I watched this movie before reading the book because my boyfriend really wanted me to watch it, but didn’t want to wait. So, anyway, I finally read it.
We all know I love Stephen King anyway, so of course this book was great. But it’s really, really great. Everything gets much darker and more demented than in the movie, and that’s my favorite thing to read. The movie had its moments, but it was more gory than anything else–which is also fine.
Anyway, the twists, the turns, the aliens, and all the crazy deaths ranks this book way up there on my favorites list now.
The ending really got me, the last two standing looking back on what they went through–craziness and awesome.
If you haven’t read it before, I highly recommend you do.
Under the Ice Blades by Lindsay Buroker
Aside from the interaction with the new dragon, this one was a little meh for me.
The plot pushed the story forward and I understand why it had to be short–it didn’t really fit with the previous book, and the next one is already way long for there to be this much more included. But at the same time, there wasn’t a lot of meat for this one to stand on its own.
Other than that, this one had another lovesick, over emotional man in it. I just didn’t see King Angulus as the kind of guy who would get all swoony over a girl. Even a girl as badass as Kaika. I would swoon over her, but I’m not a tough guy king.
Enjoyed it overall though and have already started the next book.
The Laid Back Guide to Intermittent Fasting by Kayla Cox
A non-fiction book that’s not a craft book. I’ve been dealing with my health and fitness since I had my tiny tot almost two years (!) ago and have struggled with sticking to a diet. My problem is that I love food and restricting myself made me miserable and backfired when all I wanted to eat was the stuff that’s bad for me. And that’s similar to how Kayla’s diet journey had been too. I’ve been following her advice for a few weeks now and fasting five days a week and I’ve lost three pounds. Which isn’t a lot, I know, but I haven’t done anything besides restrict the time that I eat during the weekdays. I’d rather have slow results that stick than a quick fix that I fail to upkeep after a month.
Your Author Business Plan by Joanna Penn
This was my craft book for the month, and I found it endlessly useful. I read it through first, and now I’m going to go back and answer the questions to write my own business plan. I loved how she explained her answers in the book, so I knew how to frame my own. And even though I’m way behind her in the business, I can see where I might end up if I stick to it.
The book linked to downloadable templates and tons of other help, too, so I’m sure I’m going to be returning to this book over and over again during my career as I grow.
This month I’m hoping to finish A Practical Magic, which is the book I’m doing the thorough analysis on this time. I’m about halfway through at the moment. I’m also working through the next book in the Dragon Blood series and the Arkane series. I’m thrilled with the rate I’ve been reading so far this year, and I really hope I can keep up the momentum.
What are your reading goals? Have you been on track to reach them?